Mobilisation of the Flexibility Instrument: immediate budgetary measures under the European agenda on migration

PURPOSE: to mobilise the Flexibility Instrument for immediate budgetary measures under the European Agenda on Migration.

PROPOSED ACT: Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council.

CONTENT: Council Regulation (EU, EURATOM) No 1311/2013 of 2 December 2013 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2014-2020 allows for the mobilisation of the Flexibility Instrument to allow the financing of clearly identified expenditure which could not be financed within the limits of the ceilings available for one or more headings of the multiannual financial framework.

Article 11 of Council Regulation 1311/2013 has established a Flexibility Instrument of up to EUR 471 million (2011 prices) per year.

After having examined all possibilities for re-allocating appropriations and exhausted any unallocated margin under the expenditure heading Security and Citizenship (heading 3), the Commission proposes to mobilise the Flexibility Instrument. This mobilisation concerns an amount of EUR 66.1 million beyond the ceiling of heading 3 of the multiannual financial framework, and is intended to finance support for measures for managing the refugee crisis.

The payment appropriations corresponding to the proposed mobilisation of the Flexibility Instrument are EUR 52.9 million in 2016 and EUR 13.2 million in 2017.